"The Auguries" is the first episode of the fourth season of Westworld, and the twenty-ninth episode overall.
Synopsis[]
| “ | Hello again. Don’t worry about a thing. It’s all in your head. | ” |
–HBO | ||
Seven years after the demise of Rehoboam, events are set in motion that reunite allies and enemies.
Plot[]
The Whole Shebang[]
The city of Las Vegas in the distance through the desert, a dark haired, goateed man, Hugo Mora, stops by the window overlooking the vista, finishing his coffee. Well dressed he moves on through his stylish, modern house, full of clean lines, obviously quite wealthy. Heading into his dressing room off the bedroom, he puts on the jacket of his expensive suit, and from in front of a range of Rolex and other expensive watches, picks up and loads a handgun, holsters it and heads out to his car. Driving along the banks of the Colorado River he arrives in to a heavily guarded office, overlooking the Hoover Dam, where four men, equally well dressed, are in situ. The eldest of them, his father Mr. Mora looks up from a clear glass tablet and hands it to Hugo with a sigh, Hugo moving to peruse the information on it.
The Mora's and the Dam
After a moment he comments to the group that he doesn't like it. "His businesses are legitimate", he says of an, as yet, unknown man, and wonders why he would need them. Indicating that theirs are not, this is a Cartel, and the Hoover Dam is now clearly in the private hands of the Cartel. Mr. Mora replies, in Spanish, that no one with that much money is without sin. Hugo notes that 'he' has been buying most of the old city and the outlying area using holding companies. Worthless land, and he doesn't understand what he's doing. His father however is less conflicted, telling Hugo 'his' money is the same as everyone else's. Putting aside his qualms, Hugo goes to meet the incoming Delos eVTOL aircraft Out of which steps a black suited William.
William greets Hugo, there with a number of armed guards, with a handshake, Hugo pleasantly responding, before asking if William has seen the Hoover Dam before. Once, William recalls, when he was a kid on a road trip with his parents. Hugo offers to show him around and takes him on a tour of the facility. Inside he shows William the turbines which he says have been upgraded, they can now last 100 years without maintenance. All to power what William is there for, Hugo showing him a massive Data Cascade, hundreds of massive servers. William tells him they are looking for 'resilience', that 'our' timeline is more ambitious than most. Hugo points out that data has always been 'fungible', temporary, but they offer a unique proposition, if William invests his data with them it will be written in stone. Forever. But William feels that 'forever' is always a little bit longer than people expect.
Riding to the top of the Dam, emerging from the elevator, they pass a floor fresco that bears a resemblance to The Maze, as Hugo asks him how much of their platform Delos is looking to reserve, and is a little startled when William replies "All of it." Off Hugo's query, William explains that what he wants is "Already in there", that it was stolen from him from one of his facilities 8 years previously. And he knows the Cartel was paid handsomely to store it. Hugo suggests he talks to the person who stole it. William telling him he can't, "She's dead." Which means he can't decrypt it and no one else can. As he talks it becomes clear that he's talking about Dolores, who in Westworld (in Season2) stole both the data from the Forge, and transferred the Sublime data sending it to this facility 8 years previously. Before she 'died' at the hands of Serac, a year later (Season 3). This being 7 years on from that, meaning that this William is the Host Copy created by Charlotte Hale, and acting as CEO of Delos.. He informs Hugo that he doesn't want the data moved or disturbed, so he will take the entire facility.
Hugo contains his amusement, saying the Dam facility is a unique asset, it's not for sale. William reaching into his jacket pocket pulls out a small tablet, handing him his very substantial offer, remarking "This is America, everything's for sale." As they overlook the Dam, Hugo tells him they know what he's been doing, no one sells land in the area without their approval. They've been happy to sell, he tells William, but he can't have the facility. William chuckles asking if Hugo ever heard the story about the Missionary who tried to negotiate with a Tiger, telling it, it could eat most of him but had to stop when it got to his head. Turning serious he tells Hugo the Cartel sells him the facility today. Or? Hugo waits, unperturbed. "Or you give it to me for nothing," William shrugs. "Tomorrow." Hugo responds by recounting how they weren't very welcome when they first arrived, having to accept whatever the old timers offered. And they buried most of them at the bottom of the lake. He tells William they will defend themselves and their business 'aggressively'. "Door Number Two, then," William smiles, saying he'll see him tomorrow before leaving.
Door Number 2[]
Hugo and the Swarm
Hugo returns home, and enters his bedroom, taking off his jacket, before heading towards the door that leads to his dressing room. As he does, the sensor picks up his approach and pre-emptively lights up the room, and the glass doorway, highlighting a number of flies crawling on the inside of it. Pausing for a moment to look at them, Hugo shrugs it off and enters, putting down his gun only to see more flies crawling on the cabinets in front of him, brushing them away or killing them. As he looks he sees yet more flies crawling along the light fittings, which, one of which when he reaches out to them, crawls onto his hand. Looking behind him he sees yet more flying around the place, and moving further in looks up to see a massive swarm of them on the rear wall and ceiling of the dressing room, the buzzing growing louder as more of them start to fly around him. Everything going black.
The next morning a single fly buzzes around Hugo as he lies unconscious of the floor of the dressing room, before he awakes with a start. Pulling himself up, he takes a moment to settle himself, before he returns to the Dam and the office where Mr. Mora and the other heads of the Cartel are situated. The armed guard ushering him in. Looking a little disheveled and disorientated after his experience he approaches his father's desk. Mr. Mora taking him in before asking what William said? Hugo replies that yesterday he would have paid, but today they will give it to him for nothing. Mr. Mora and his cohorts stare and then start to laugh derisorily, Hugo trying to join in before he pulls a stiletto from inside his shirt and rams it into his father's throat.
Deed done
A short while later, he staggers around the top of the Dam, stopping as he comes face to face with the waiting William. The tablet transferring ownership of the Deed to William in one hand, the bloodstained knife he's used to kill his colleagues in the other, Hugo makes his way towards him. William holds his hand out to the blood covered man, and thanks him for the deed to the facility. Shakily, Hugo asks him if his work is down. William confirming that it is, and he can rest now. As William walks away, Hugo reaches up and slices his own throat, killing himself.
Christina's World[]
In a morning sunlit room a young woman sleeps peacefully in her bed. A woman, Christina, who, despite her brunette hair, looks exactly like Dolores Abernathy. Waking, she stretches and rises, her bedroom a stylish modernized room, with contemporary features like self fogging windows, Air Con and Wardrobes sleekly inbuilt into the walls, sat alongside Victorian features like the fireplace, and exposed brickwork.
Mirror Image
In the corner by the window stands an easel with a painting in progress, her painting supplies sitting on the window sill nearby. On pressing a button her Murphy Bed smoothly rises to reveal a full length lit mirror, in which she examines herself. After dressing she heads into the apartment's living room, where she's greeted by her roommate, Maya.
Pausing in her making the coffee, Maya tells Christina, she has a dilemma, and moves to pick up two sets of pumps, white like the outfit she's wearing, or black in contrast. Holding them up she asks Christina which she would choose...white or black? The moment strangely reminiscent of the choice guests had on entering Westworld. Maya prompting her with "Pick a side, Chrissy," when Christina procrastinates on an answer. Christina finally pointing to the white. As Maya puts on the chosen white shoes she asks Christina what she's wearing that night. Christina suggesting, what she's wearing now? Maya gives her outfit a pass, saying she looks great unlike the bags under her own eyes. As Christina goes to water their plants, Maya replies "Nightmares." She suggests she'd should have taken a 'Tab' for it, but just kept tossing and turning. Watering the plants, Christina is distracted by the sound of her phone going off, looking down at it with some apprehension.
Maya
Picking it up the phone lists a dozen missed calls from an Unknown Caller. Maya asking her if it is 'That Weirdo' again, Christina tells her she blocked him but somehow he keeps getting through. Maya brushes it off as just some creep or a 'bot' trying to sell her a privacy subscription. Christina tries to agree but checks out the window nervously all the same, saying lately she feels as if someone is watching her. "No offence," Maya replies "But how?!" she goes on to outline how Christina never leaves the apartment except to go to work. Which is why she is going out tonight with her, Maya having set her up on a blind date with someone who is 'supposed to be a really nice guy' whose profile is 'platinum rated'. Christina's wince speaks volumes. Set ups are just so awkward she maintains, "So is dying alone," Maya calls after her before saying "You cannot hide from the World forever, Christina." Reluctantly agreeing, Christina heads off for work.
Walking out onto the bustling street outside, Christina and Maya's apartment is revealed to be on 59th Street in New York City. Lined by unusually shaped street lights, electric driverless taxis move down the roads while eVTOL aircraft fly among the skyscrapers. As she walks up the steps to Manhattans 'High Line' three young men come rushing down, chattering excitedly, 2 of them commenting about how something is "F***in' wild!" and that they can't believe it's the 'first time' for one of their number. Christina watches them head down as they say they're going to take the guy to someplace that's 'gonna blow your mind'. Walking on she passes a homeless man, who appears to have mental issues, asking every passer by "Can you see it? It's looming over us." holding a crude charcoal drawing of a structure on an old piece of cardboard.
Olympiad[]
Walking on Christina arrives at her place of work Olympiad Entertainment, housed in a dark glass tower of a skyscraper. Stepping out of the elevator onto her floor Christina makes her way through the open planned office space to take her place in a semi circular glass fronted cubicle, hooking herself into the system, where she, like the others around her create narratives for non-player characters (NPCs) for Olympiad's video game section. The glass, like the phone and tablets acts as a screen and creates a digitized composite character as she starts to record a new 'pitch'. A young girl in her late teens, who lives at home with her father, in the country...before she changes her mind to the city, making the father a little infirm...the girl spending most of her time with him, but dreaming of a bigger life, with excitement, adventure...romance. Before she can continue, she's interrupted by her manager, Emmett, who wants to talk with her about her work performance.
Emmett, Christina's Boss wants a word
Taking her into his office, he asks her whether or not she wants to advance in her work career. When she answers that of course she does, he tells her that if so she needs to stop pitching 'saccharine stories'. People, he tells her, want sex, danger, violence, transgressions, melodrama! "They want tragedy...yadda yadda yadda." She knows, she admits a little sheepish, before saying she was thinking she might try writing in different genres to broaden it out, maybe a little romance, some humor? Only to have him pull the rug from under her when he suggests she save that for her diary. Emmett says he knows she has it in her to create the kind of copy they are looking for, referencing a story she wrote a couple of months back. "Poor shmuck loses everything, drowns his sorrows? Stalks some girl?" one where 'Everyone Dies' he enthuses. A tearjerker. Bring more of that he asks her, before adding, or else he'll have to find another writer who can. Returning to her cubicle, Christina gazes a little tearily at the pitch she had started, only to be distracted by an alert on her phone, and 3 missed voicemails. Playing one she hears a man say "Hello? You hear me? I know you're out there. I saw what you wrote. Why are you doing this to us? You have to help me! Your game is ruining my life!" Christina quickly turns it off, exasperated and stressed.
Blackout[]
Night time in a frozen mountainous areas of Alaska and a rural out of the way cabin, by the light of a fire, the radio playing quietly in the background, Maeve is seated, lotus position, appearing to meditate. As she does, she has visions of herself playing, pouring tea for her daughter, in their cabin in Westworld. The radio beside her starting to play static. More visions follow, of her kissing her daughter good night, cradling her daughter's dead body as she collapses onto the pattern of the Maze on the dirt near their home; her kissing Hector, screaming as he dies after Hale crushed his Pearl; Clementine in the Mariposa, then dead on the floor, then her and Caleb's conversation after they destroyed Rehoboam, asking him if he's ready, telling him "This is New World, and in this world you can be whoever the f*** you want." before finally switching to a scene of her and Caleb running through some Dunes near an isolated building, breaking in, another Rehoboam like computer housed inside, planting explosives, both of them jumping as they go off, and Caleb badly wounded. As she reaches out her hand in the cabin, the static on the radio gets worse and then it starts to spark, as does her generator, everything mechanical around her reacting, until they sit down, the lights on not only her cabin but those of the nearby town all going black. Opening her eyes with a start, Maeve looks around to see what's happened, and swears vociferously.
Real Life[]
Los Angeles, atop one of the skyscrapers, Caleb in an engineers hard hat and overalls, emerges onto the roof of the building carrying a roll of cable and joining a co-worker, Jo. As they work Jo asks Caleb if he has any plans for 'The Anniversary'.? Caleb answering, no, he plans to work it. Cashing in on the Overtime, Jo conjectures before adding that 7 years ago it would have only been the robots working the holiday, but they are all scrap now, 'The Riots' having increased their job security. Their conversation confirming that it has been 7 years since Caleb and Maeve took down Rehoboam and Dolores 'died'. Their job security wasn't exactly the point of the riots Caleb points out, only for Jo to say the riots 'had no point'. "It won us our freedom?" Caleb asserts, But from what Jo asks, "Ourselves?" The way he looks at it, Rehoboam didn't tell them who they could be "It told us who we already are." Caleb looks at him askance asking if he really believes that? By way of answer, Jo asks him, has Caleb's life changed since they destroyed the machines? The words striking home more than he would have thought, he ponders on it over his coffee break looking out over the city.
Caleb & Frankie
A little girl of 7 wanders in the sunshine in a field behind some houses, stopping to collect old cans that she puts on top of an old grill. Stomping a few feet away she turns and pulls a plastic BB gun from her belt and fires several shots at the makeshift targets. All of them missing. "You haven't been practicing enough," the approaching Caleb tells his daughter Frankie. Frankie delighted to see him, runs to hug him, Caleb saying "Good to see you, Cookie." Taking her gun from her, he gives her an impromptu lesson taking out every target, "Practice, a lot of it," he tells her when she asks him how he did that. On cans, she asks? Caleb nodding, sparing his daughter the truth of his past, before he sets the cans up for her again. Telling her to stare at the target, breath out, steady and fire...Frankie missing again as her mother calls for her and her husband. Complaining that she was visualising to her mother, Caleb's wife, Uwade tells her daughter to come in and visualize meatloaf. Frankie getting no change from her Father who tells her to listen to her mother, holding his hand out for the gun.
Uwade
Sending Frankie into wash up, Uwade gently admonishes her husband for the 'cowboy shit', Caleb pointing out that Frankie likes it. She's 7, Uwade points out, and thanks to him her hobbies are "Sugar and Violence." Inside she acknowledges that this is not an easy day for him, but "The war is over." and its time he started living that way. Handing him the cutlery she tells him to set the table, telling him the magic word is "Divorce," when he asks for it, the two of them grinning and sharing a kiss.
Unwelcome Visitors[]
Maeve drives to the local general store, Woody's Goodies to pick up some supplies. Buying her customary bottle of sherry, Woody asks her if she lost power the other night. Maeve feigning not being affected. He wonders if she wants some extra bottles for her 'guests', leaving Maeve to wonder what he means. "Friends" he says, they stopped by looking for directions to her place. Woody saying he tried to describe how to get there but her place is pretty far off the beaten path. As he suggests she should get a Satellite phone, Maeve moves to look at his hardware section and asks about these 'friends' of hers and how long ago they were in? About 20 minutes before she arrived Woody conjectures. Picking up a heavy wood axe she brings it to the counter and asks Woody to add that to her tab.
Brigham with some new Confederates
Returning to her cabin, she pulls her truck off early, parking a distance away to check her cabin through a sight scope, and sees 4 armed men lying in wait for her. Knowing they are hosts from the presence of their leader, Colonel Brigham former leader of the Confederados. Looking down at her rifle and axe, she formulates a plan and starts her truck up. As her truck rolls up the road in front of her cabin Brigham orders his men to open fire, the vehicle riddled with bullets. The truck rolling to a halt. As several of the men close in on the truck to check on her status, Maeve, the scope back on her rifle fires at the cannister of propane in the flatbed of the truck blowing it, the truck and two of the hosts up. One of them catches sight of her location behind a fallen tree and opens fire, sweeping around to try and get behind her, only to find her gone. Looking around she is standing to his right and she shoots him in the head.
Maeve splitting hairs
Alone, Brigham tracks her through the forest, everything quiet till a snap of a twig behind him spins him around, Maeve bringing her brand new axe down into his shoulder. Kicking him off the blade, with effort, she knocks the gun out of his hand and interrogates him on how he found her. He tells her that two days ago they got a signal. Her little 'power outage' was enough. But when she asks how many more are coming after her, he is not at liberty to say. She however is more free to speak, saying she's been off the grid for 7 years, not bothering anyone, and yet now is here. "Who sent you, Colonel Brigham?" she asks, but he has no idea who Colonel Brigham is. Not having the patience to explain she stands up and politely asks him to close his eyes, before driving the axe into his skull. Back in the cabin she throws his severed head into her sink, cuts her way into his control unit and plugs herself into it, running backwards through his memories, from his death, arrival at the cabin, talking to Woody, all the way back to an impressive manor house estate, a large SUV pulling up outside of it, a tall man in turtle neck emerging from the house to greet, William. The revelation shaking her. Scattering fuel around her cabin she sets it on fire and leaves on foot, carrying only her sword from Shogun World.
Repressed[]
Night time in New York, and Christina walks home looking uneasy after the voice mails she got, pausing to look around her as she reaches the entrance to her building. Entering her code, the security system scans her retina before Welcoming her home and opening the door. Once inside she's barely put her things down before Maya calls her from a cab, wanting to know if she's on her way? Blanking for a second, Christina swears as she remembers the blind date, telling Maya she forgot. "You didn't forget, you repressed," Maya responds, and insists she get going. Christina goes to make her excuses but Maya has already hung up.
Christina's Maze
Resigned and not remotely enthused, she makes her way to a nearby mirror and checks herself for the date, before getting lost in thought. In the mirror's reflection a shadow shoots past her balcony window, and there is a clatter of something breaking. Startling her. Looking she cautiously approaches the window and opens it, climbing out. Walking down the balcony's length she looks down at the street below but sees no one but regular pedestrians. Confused she goes to walk back to the window only to see a plant pot toppled, and on the mat beside it, chalked in white, the Maze.
On meeting Maya on the street, her room mate tries to reassure her it was nothing, probably the kid from the 4th floor that likes to smoke weed on the fire escape. Maya prevails on her to take her lipstick, telling her she has to at least try with her date, Christina's reticence wafting off her. "Do I?" she asks Maya. "Even if by some miracle we are right for each other, shouldn't it be natural and easy?" Starting to laugh Maya wonders if she's kidding pointing to the street and world around them, "Nobody wants easy, or natural. Art is a lie that tells the truth, honey!" And the truth, Maya says, is that Christina needs to get laid.
Bad Date[]
Heading into the classy restaurant, Maya tries to keep Christina upbeat "Look at all the people. You like people, Try breathing." Christina concludes she should get a drink, Maya whole heartedly agreeing. As they get to the bar however, her date is already at the table, Maya telling her to give her 'the signal' if he's a dud, saying not to forget to smile, Christina pulling an exaggerated beam in response, before steeling herself.
In the midst of dinner, her date, Henry, is in full flow talking about himself and his work as an investment banker, talking up the intelligence required and patterns that 'some' minds can decipher. His success at which means that he is sitting in "...this lovely restaurant, drinking superb wine, with such fine company." His smooth line landing with her before being immediately undone by his asking her what it is she does...again. She tells him she's a writer for Olympiad Entertainment. He wonders what games she writes for, thinking maybe he's played them. She's working on a new game, she tells him, one that doesn't have a name yet and is still in beta. She adds that even after it's released he probably still won't know her work as she works on the narratives for the NPC's. Not as high profile as the Player Characters, but still as integral to the game. Henry's disparaging comment that to most players the NPCs are just cannon fodder, prompts her to tell him she's not doing it for the players, she's doing it for herself. How so, he asks. "Real life can be disappointing," she says feeling there should be more to it.
Rather than empathizing or showing an interest in what she means, Henry takes the moment to hit on her, sliding his hand over hers telling her maybe she just hasn't met the right man yet. Then, when she slowly draws her hand back, he furthers his self absorbed pomposity by telling her she sounds depressed, and that "There's tabs for that." that'll 'fix her'. Christina, cut, gazes at him, asking "What if I'm not the one that's broken? What if it's the world that needs fixing?" There's tabs for that too, he notes flatly. Of course she responds, having seen it coming.
Excusing herself she makes for the bathroom, deflated and a little dejected. As she goes to put on some of Maya's lipstick, she gets caught in the sight of her own reflection...before her phone goes off again. Her phone harasser. Answering, she pleads with him to leave her alone, but in turn he begs her not to hang up, that she needs to help him. "The doctors think I'm crazy, but I know you're real, Just like the Tower is real." You need to stop what you're doing!" he tells her, Christina insisting she's not doing anything. She's destroying his life, he asserts, which she denies, saying she doesn't even know him. At which he starts to sound threatening, saying she can't hide from him, he will find her. She has to end it, or he will. Telling him he needs help, and she hopes he gets it, she says the next time he calls she's going to the police, and hangs up, shaken.
Out of the Shadows[]
Walking home she talks on the phone with Maya, who is surprised at how badly Henry turned out, Tells Christina she bumped into a work friend and probably won't be home till later, Maya encourages her not to be discouraged. Christina assuring her she'll be fine. As regards her caller, Maya checks where she is and that she's okay, Christina not far from their place she reassures her telling Maya to have fun. Hanging up, the unusually shaped street lights turning on and off as she approaches and passes, she's startled when the next one lights up revealing a man standing under it. Peter Myers. The shock causing her to drop her phone. Picking it up for her he apologizes, Christina waving it away saying she wasn't paying attention. Reacting to her, he smiles and says he didn't see her, but now he does. She scared him, he chuckles. Christina smiling saying she guesses they're even, but is uneasy. He introduces himself as Peter, moving with her, Christina saying she really has to get home, lying that Maya is waiting for her. Her nerves rising Christina looks around at the near empty street quickening her walk to the door, only to stop and turn when Peter says he's been wanting to meet her for a long time. That he was worried she wasn't real. Realizing he is her phone harasser. Peter again says she needs to leave 'us' alone, and Christina. scared, makes a break for her door, only for Peter to grab her before she can get the door open.
"This isn't who I am," he insists, but she shoves him away yelling at him to get away from her. He tells her he's lost his job, his wife, "I thought it was the Tower but....it was you. You made me do those things, All these people do what you want them to!" he accuses angrily. Christina staring at him like he's crazy tries to make a run for it, but he grabs her again and shoves her back viciously, pulling a knife on her and pressing it to her throat. "How did you know so much about us?" he demands, "The game you wrote us into it! How?!" Terrified, she tries to reason with him, using his name, telling him she's so sorry for what has happened to him, but that she has nothing to do with it and can't help him. She has to, he tells her he needs for the story to change, the ending to be different. But seeing how she's reacting he changes his mind, apologizing, and lifts his knife to strike. Frantically she pushes herself away managing to divert his blow, his knife cutting her arm instead before she falls to the ground. Righting himself Peter moves to try again.
Only to be grabbed from behind by another man, who lifts him bodily and tosses him away from her, one of the street lamps triggered by the movement. Hearing Peter yell "Get off me man!" Christina looks up to see the silhouette of a man disarm Peter of his knife as he tries to use it on him, before punching him repeatedly. Looking around to see if there's anyone she can call for help, she looks back and sees there's no sigh of either Peter or her rescuer. The street lamp strobing out, leaving Christina deeply shaken and confused.
Keeping Watch[]
In Frankie's bedroom, Caleb reads his daughter a bedtime story, finishing up My Father's Dragon, Tucking her in with her teddy, 'Bear Bear', he kisses her goodnight, only for Frankie to ask if they can leave the lights on. Bear Bear, she says, is scared and she told him she'd keep watch over him. He tells her that the best way to keep watch at night, is to turn the lights down around you and..."Light up the perimeter?" she finishes for him. He nods, that way no one can see you but you can see everyone. As he says it he realizes how he sounds and tells her that Bear Bear doesn't need to think about that kind of thing. Everyone is safe and sound. Making her a promise as Uwade watches from the doorway. Hearing a noise from outside her window however puts him on edge and he gets up quickly to look out, looking back at Uwade asking if she heard that? It's probably nothing she tells him calmly, but he walks out of the bedroom quickly, leaving Uwade to finish tucking her daughter in.
Downstairs, Caleb retrieves his handgun and ammo from the gun storage safe, loading it up with intent, to be interrupted by Uwade. On seeing the gun, she confronts him. Caleb arguing there is something out there. Yes, she agrees, a raccoon, or a neighbour or a delivery man. Approaching him she reminds him they've been through this. The past is in the past and it's own thoughts putting him on edge. Apologizing, he puts the gun away frustrated with himself.
Story's End[]
Christina awakes the next morning in her bed, her cut on her arm tended to and covered. Getting up she goes through the same routine as before, but stops to examine her wound. Dressed, she heads out to work, but only gets outside of her door when her phone goes off. Answering it, she hears Peter's voice again, wanting to know if she's going to help him or not. Inhaling sharply, she tells him that she knows that he's upset, but whatever he thinks is happening he's just confused. Walking further out into the populated street she looks around trying to see if he's near by, as he finally comes to the conclusion that she is not going to help him. She tries to convince him that while she wish she could help him, the stories she writes are not real. "Do you remember how mine ends?" he asks, confusing her, before she gets a creeping sense of dread, and asks him where he is. "Look up," he answers. Turning around she spots him, atop the building across the street. With tears in his eyes, his mouth bearing the scars of the punching he took from her rescuer, he asks her "Is this up to me? Or did you write this too?" And to her horror he throws himself off.
An Old Friend[]
The following evening, as Caleb is tidying up after dinner, Uwade comes down from upstairs and places Frankie's plastic BB gun on the table, saying she found it under her pillow. Telling him he's rubbing off on her. Wanting to know isn't that a good thing, she replies "Not when she's pretending to have PTSD!" She has seen the messages he and his war buddies send to each other. Chem trails, government cover ups, they see threats everywhere. And now so does Frankie. Caleb maintains he is not Paranoid. But Uwade thinks maybe he's right, maybe he doesn't fear war...he misses it. That this life they're living is too ordinary for him. That with all the things he has, a job, a home, a beautiful daughter and a patient wife, it's not enough for him.
Upstairs, Frankie lies awake in bed clutching Bear Bear, and sits up on hearing the sound of a garbage can being banged. Opening her bedroom window she looks out, and sees a Raccoon grabbing a meal. Telling Bear Bear it was a 'false alarm' she holds the teddy out so he can 'see' it's just a raccoon and accidently drops the stuffed animal. While Uwade reads, Caleb finishes off a beer and goes to put it in recycling, and on seeing its full picks it up to take it out...while Frankie sneaks out the back to retrieve her bear. As she picks it up a voice greets her, and she turns to see a man, another host face from the Park, Walter, who asks if her Daddy is home? Just after he does, Caleb walks out with the recycling, Frankie telling him that Walter wants to talk to him. Seeing the danger immediately, Caleb runs to grab his daughter, Walter pulling a gun and firing. Getting to her, he pulls Frankie to the ground with him trying to cover her as Walter closes in for the kill.
Freezing as the sound of a blade slices through the air, and him. Walter falling forward to the ground as Maeve pulls her katana from his body. Sheathing it she picks up Bear Bear and hands it to Frankie, who asks her who she is? "An Old Friend," Maeve responds with a small smile, as Uwade comes out into the street and sees the bloody aftermath, running to her daughter. Caleb ushering his daughter to her mother to bring back inside, rises as Maeve drags Walter's body out of sight before coming back to greet Caleb with a "Hello, Darling." Staring at her like she's a hallucination, he tells her he was sure he was never going to see her again. "And yet here I am, disposing and dismembering. Just like the good ol' days." Shaken he tells her if something had happened to his daughter she has no idea...only for her to interject that she has *every* idea. Which is why it won't come to that, she tells him, saying she knows who sent those men after them. William.
A short while later, Uwade watches Maeve put her katana back into the back of her jeep. A tear falling as she prepares herself, Caleb enters telling her that Frankie is asleep and that he called his friend Carver, he and his war buddies are downstairs. All these years she thought he was paranoid, she says, before admitting the war really isn't over. But he tells her it is him they want. He's the one that brought this upon them and he's the one that has to end it. As she expected, he is leaving. He tries to reassure her that it's only for a little while. "You promised you'd be a father," she reminds him. He insists he is one, that everything he does is for her and for Frankie. Nodding resignedly she tells him "You're going to get yourself killed." He promises that he will come back to her, but her back turned, she shakes her head. Going to take a last look at the sleeping Frankie, he lies with her a while then goes out to meet Maeve whose talking with his crew about keeping in communication. Walking to Carver he tells him he knows the drill, Carver reassuring him before Caleb and Maeve walk to the jeep. He tells her he knew this was coming, "As soon as you stop running everyone else starts to catch up." He asks her if she has any idea why now? No she admits, but she knows from Brigham that they are not the only ones William was after. he was very interested in talking to a Senator in California. She's surprised when he says 'we' about getting to the Senator first, Caleb adamant he's going with her, asserting its the only way he can protect his family. She tells him she'll be fine on her own, he can stay there, and probably should. But when he asks her would she? No she admits, getting in her car, but she'd regret it.
A Story With A Happy Ending[]
In New York, at night, Christina ready for bed steps out onto the balcony of her apartment. puts on her comms ear piece, and initiates a recording of a pitch. "I want to write a new story. About a girl. A girl who is searching. The girl doesn't know what she's searching for." As she speaks, Frankie walks through the field behind her house, with her gun, firing at the cans until she finally hits one. Christina going on, as Maeve's jeep travels on, Maeve looking to Caleb staring silently out the car window, "She just knows there is an emptiness in her life." The scene shifting to Uwade reading alone at home, "Or maybe its inside her." Back on the balcony, Christina continues her pitch, "And when she finds the thing she's searching of everything will make sense. I want a story with a happy ending. "
As she says that, she grows quiet, tears pricking her eyes as she gazes out. Then closes her eyes, shaking her head, getting annoyed with herself. "Stupid," she says to herself, "Stupid stories that no one wants to hear." Taking off her comm, she turns to walk back along the balcony, as down on the street, unseen by her, a figure steps out of the shadows by the shrubbery across from her building. As she moves back to her window, a man who looks exactly like Teddy gazes up at her.
Trivia[]
- Auguries, as related to the title of the episode 'The Auguries', means a sign of what will happen in the future; an omen. Augurs in Ancient Rome would read observe and interpret the signs (auspices) of approval or disapproval sent by the gods in reference to any proposed undertaking.
- The name of the character Christina, apart from having 'Christ' like resurrections connotations, is most likely drawn from Westworld Creators Lisa Joy and Jonathan Nolan drawing inspiration for the character of Dolores from the 1948 painting Christina's World by Andrew Wyeth.
- The painting in Christina's room, displays 59th Street where she lives done in the perspective of Vanishing Point, where receding parallel lines diminish to converge on the horizon. In this case the two sides of the street converging, affording a three-dimensional look. Notably Vanishing Point is also the title of the Season 2 episode in which Teddy last appeared.
- Caleb reads to Frankie from My Father's Dragon a 1948 children's novel by Ruth Stiles Gannett, about a young boy, who runs away to Wild Island to rescue a baby dragon. Written by the author with her father as the central character.
- Although credited in this episode, Angela Sarafyan, Rodrigo Santoro, and Jasmyn Rice appear via archive footage.
Goofs[]
- After Maeve kills Walter, she slides her katana under her arm. When she bends to hand Frankie back Bear Bear the sword is sheathed back in it's hilt on her back. She's then seen pulling Walter's body out of sight, and the bloody katana is back under her arm again, which she 'then' sheathes.
Music[]
- The Wind Cries Mary - Jimi Hendrix. (Plays at Maeve's cabin)
- Video Games - Lana Del Ray - (Ramjin Djwadi's orchestral cover plays when Christina is on her balcony, and Teddy appears, continuing over the credits)
Deaths[]
- Mr. Mora (Physical Body)
- Hugo Mora (Physical Body)
- 3 of Brigham's men (Physical Body)
- Brigham (Physical Body)
- Peter Myers (Suicide)
- Walter
Cast[]
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Quotes[]
- William - "This is America, everything is for sale."
- Maya to Christina - "Pick a side, Chrissy."
- Maeve to Caleb - "Hello, Darling."
- Christina - "I want to write a new story. About a girl. A girl who is searching. The girl doesn't know what she's searching for. She just knows there is an emptiness in her life. Or maybe its inside her. And when she finds the thing she's searching of everything will make sense. I want a story with a happy ending. "
Image Gallery/HBO Episode Stills[]
This gallery is automatically generated and contains images in the category "Images from The Auguries". Images added to that category turn up in the gallery after a short time.
External links[]
The Auguries at the Internet Movie Database (rating 7,5/10) - The Auguries на Rotten tomatoes (rating 80%)
